16 Dec 09 Mountain Bike Wheels
Mountain bike wheels can be arguable the most important part of your entire mountain bike. They hold the chain and gear shift, support you, and get you where you need to go. A mountain bike just wouldn’t be a bike without the wheels. So when it comes to replacing a wheel how can you be certain you are getting what you need to get you going, and going where you want to go.
First thing you should consider is the size of the wheel. Wheels come in three sizes, twenty-four, twenty-six and twenty-nine inch wheels. Of the three the most common is the twenty six inch but for those that enjoy cross country biking and BMX the two less common sizes should be considered.
Once you’ve decided on which size will work best for the type of biking that you are going to be doing, it’s time to think materials. This can be the tricky part, since mountain bike wheels are not exactly cheap. You can find some for fifty dollars or less, but these are not always made with the best materials. The cheaper material can corrode and break on you. These breaks often happen when you are in the middle of using the bike so there is the potential for injury. More expensive wheels are made from better material but they do cost a lot more sometimes twice as much or higher.
If you can afford it a good way to ensure you are getting quality work is to order custom made mountain bike wheels. You can choose your size, materials, rim type, and spoke type just about anything. These are generally on the higher end of the price range but this will ensure you good quality wheels and less concern of breakage during use.
If you are good with your hands and want to you can build your own wheels. Understand though, you will probably not save any money going this route. Often the all the components together will equal the cost of a designer wheel. Building your own wheel, while potentially satisfying to the do it yourselfer is a difficult and time consuming job. To build wheels you need three main components: rims, spokes, and hubs.
Mountain bike wheels are not always the cheapest thing to replace but they are among the most important part of the bike. In some cases people find it might be cheaper to upgrade bikes rather than purchase new wheels, but biking enthusiast would much rather guarantee a quality ride over just getting something for as little as possible. Sometimes, safety and quality are worth more than being frugal.
